The BC Centre for Disease Control and its public health lab are reviewing the genetic sequencing of what they are now calling a ``variant of interest'' that has made its way to this province. A statement from the Ministry of Health says 39 COVID-19 cases involving the B.1.617 variant first identified in India were found in B-C by April 4th, but the strain was not then considered a variant of concern or a variant under investigation. The statement says the ministry should be able to provide an update by later this week on the number and severity of cases linked to the latest variant. Quebec id

A British Columbia Supreme Court judge is expected to deliver her decision today over whether a man who stabbed two high school students is not criminally responsible because he had a mental disorder. Gabriel Klein was convicted last year for the murder of 13-year-old Letisha Reimer and the aggravated assault of her friend in the rotunda of Abbotsford Senior Secondary in 2016.Klein, who has schizophrenia, applied for a hearing over criminal responsibility as sentencing was set to begin in September and he later testified that he believed he was stabbing a witch and a monster.His lawyer has ar

Police say a man has been killed in a shooting this morning outside the Langley Sportsplex. Sergeant Frank Jang of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says it's "infuriating" that people are shooting one another in broad daylight. No further details are being provided about the second deadly shooting during daylight hours in Metro Vancouver this week. A man was also fatally shot near the basketball court at Town Centre Park in Coquitlam at about 6:30 p-m on Monday while 40 to 50 people were there. IHIT on Twitter: IHIT is being deployed to #LangleyBC for a fatal shooting at the Langley

Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.’s provincial health officer, and Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, have issued a joint statement regarding updates on the COVID-19 response in British Columbia. "Today, we are reporting 862 new cases, for a total of 121,751 cases in British Columbia. "There are 8,906 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, with 13,135 people under public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases. A further 111,039 people who tested positive have recovered. "Of the active cases, 483 individuals are currently hospitalized with COVID-19, 163 of whom are in intens

Surrey RCMP is pleased to welcome Constable Sarbjit Sangha to our Communications and Media Relations Unit as Media Relations Officer. Cst. Sangha joins the Media Relations Unit from the Surrey RCMP Drug Unit where she has spent the past 10 years as an investigator, most recently focussing on proceeds of crime investigations. She has spent her entire 14-year career in Surrey working Frontline patrols and Major Crime. Born in Punjab, she immigrated to Canada in 1997, where she learned English and pursued the dream she had since she was a little girl of becoming a police officer. Cst. Sangha is

The BC Wildfire Service says a wildfire in the southern Interior is still burning out of control. The service says 42 firefighters were at the scene yesterday, 18 kilometres northwest of Merritt. Two helicopters and two pieces of heavy equipment are also being used to bring the one-square-kilometre fire under control. An evacuation alert issued Sunday by the Thompson Nicola Regional District remains in place, affecting 54 properties in Canford and the Miller Estates Subdivision. BC Wildfire Service on Twitter: The #BCWildfire Service continues to respond to the Petit Creek wildfire (K60293).

A B.C. Supreme Court judge has granted Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou's request to delay the final leg in her extradition hearings, days before they were set to begin. Associate Chief Justice Heather Holmes says she will deliver reasons for her decision in writing in the next week or so and a date to resume proceedings will be determined later. The hearings were scheduled to begin Monday but Meng's lawyers said they needed more time to review documents related to the case obtained through a Hong Kong court. They asked Holmes on Monday to adjourn proceedings until Aug. 3, a delay they argued wo

Health officials are urging eligible British Columbians to register online for a vaccine in order to reduce growing pressure on health-care workers getting "pushed to the limits" at hospitals. Provincial health officer Doctor Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix say those aged 35 and up can now register for a vaccine as part of the province's age-based vaccination stream. Dix and Dr. Henry say 849 more people have become infected with COVID-19 and one more person has died for a total of 1,539 fatalities since the pandemic began. They say 456 people are in hospital and 148 of them are i

The provincial deficit is predicted to hit a record this year with billions of dollars in new spending promised for infrastructure and supports for families and businesses. Finance Minister Selina Robinson forecasts a 9.7-billion-dollar deficit this fiscal year and says it may take seven to nine years to balance the books. She says the province will help the recovery with 8.7 billion dollars in infrastructure spending over three years that will create 85 thousand jobs. Another 1.6 billion dollars is promised for poverty reduction strategies and an extra 3.1 billion for the health-care and men